Chapter 28
CHAPTER TWENTY-EIGHT
REV
Ispent most of my life believing the words of my mother.
That I was a monster. That I was born without a soul. That I was given breath just to steal the air from others.
That I shouldn’t exist.
My grandparents did their best to counter the mental damage that woman inflicted upon me, but when my grandpa sat me down after I mentioned pursuing a job in fashion and told me I should join the military instead, I knew even he didn’t think I was suited for anything other than killing.
So I leaned into the role others created for me. I let it become my identity. I equated skill to purpose. My purpose was to eliminate threats.
And I enjoyed it. I can’t deny that fact.
When I got hired at Sinro, I assumed it would be more of the same. I’d be fed contracts. I’d hunt. I’d kill. The cycle would continue until a bullet took me out of this world.
Only, Cain expressed his trust in me not just as a leader, but as a friend.
I started questioning who I was and what I was capable of.
I started to wonder if my family was wrong about me.
Through my work with Sinro, I formed more friendships.
Sure, I played around more than was professionally acceptable.
I grated nerves for my own personal entertainment.
But I also discovered I quite liked influencing positive behavior.
It gave me a high unlike any other. It made me feel good about my existence.
Then I met Dante, and my perception of myself shifted again.
I was drawn to his pretty face and feisty attitude, but when I learned how sweet and vulnerable he could be, my feelings developed into something beyond lust and fascination. Something deeper than obsession. A desire to earn his rare smiles and affection.
Which is why I’m racing toward his brother on a suicide mission.
Maybe I’ve been waiting for an excuse to shed this new version of myself and give in to the bloodshed. Or maybe I care for Dante so fiercely, I’d do anything to give him back his happiness. He should be on stage performing, not worrying about enemies stalking him and his brother in the shadows.
Of course, I hope to be front row, showering him with praise after each performance. I want to give him flowers and kisses and breakfasts and orgasms. I want to give him the whole fucking world.
But maybe I was never supposed to be that person for him. Maybe I was only supposed to be this. The calculative, cold-blooded killer blasting bullets into the skulls of criminals.
“Here.” Cain hands me a comm piece from the passenger seat.
I cut him a look. “What’s this for?”
“Team is on the way.”
My brow lifts. “You telling me we’re not going all Wild West?”
“Oh, we are. But Ezra doesn’t allow me to be reckless with my life, so we’re calling in reinforcements. Newest operating rule.”
I shake my head. “Recruits needed more time before we fed them to the wolves.”
“Unfortunately, more time isn’t always a luxury when you’re facing off against a gang of remorseless killers. Which is why you and I are going in first to balance shit out.”
A smile breaks out on my face. “This is why you’re my best friend.”
I fit the comm piece in my ear. “Alright, kids. Who’s all joining this chaos mission?”
“Rorik here. I’m four blocks away.”
“Isaac. I’m almost in position.”
“Forest. Six miles out. I’ll pick Rorik’s lame ass up. Leave some action for me.”
“I’m not answering like that,” Alaric mumbles.
“Update, Alaric,” Cain says grumpily.
“Do we want the power cut for just the lofts or the entire block?” Alaric questions.
“Just the lofts, show off,” Cain replies.
After we ditch the vehicle in a neighboring parking lot, grabbing the duffel bag we keep stocked with weapons in the back, Alaric feeds us the code to get in the front door where Laz’s phone pinged.
Normally, we’d work top down to clear a building, but we’re trying to eliminate SIXX’s escape route through the tunnels. We’ll keep them caged. And if any of them do spill onto the street, they’ll end up in Isaac’s sniper sight.
Unzipping the duffel bag, I let all the bullshit of the structured world fade away as I pull out supplies. I’m fully focused on the task at hand—eliminating as many SIXX as possible before our team shows up.
No more waiting. No more making Dante suffer. No more losses on our end.
I promised to keep the álvarez brothers safe.
I also promised Dante his revenge. I plan on upholding both promises, however, everything leading up to the capture of Cristián isn’t something Dante needs to be involved in when he’s too pure a soul to even strike a killing blow on a murderous psychopath who threatened to fuck him up.
Pistols reloaded, I fill my suit with smoke bombs, bullets, and a grenade just for fun. If SIXX wants to cause chaos, we’ll give them a healthy dose of it. It’s time to crawl into the nest and see what kind of predators are lurking inside.
Cain replenishes his own stock of ammunition, clicking his loaded magazine into his AR Platform. He gives me a nod.
“This fucking building had better not blow up,” he mumbles as I punch in the access code.
I snort, thinking back to our rescue mission for Ezra and how it earned Cain permanent nerve damage in his thigh after a sudden explosion caught us off guard.
“You really haven’t been the same since. Or maybe that’s just old age setting in,” I tease.
“Your capacity for humor in serious situations never ceases to piss me off.”
I tap a knuckle to my head. “Wired wrong.”
Cain frowns at me. I keep my expression blank to prove I don’t feel any certain way about how I was made. But the truth is, I do.
I wish I were a better man for Dante.
Kicking open the front door, we sweep inside.
“Power,” Cain murmurs into the comm.
We both tug on night vision goggles as the lights cut off.
The first floor is mostly abandoned commercial space. No SIXX hiding out among the discarded liquor bottles, beer cans, and Styrofoam takeout boxes.
When we step out onto the second floor, SIXX members are creeping out to investigate the power situation. We drop three of them before they can scramble for masks and retaliate.
Cain barges into the first open loft door, and it’s a rush of adrenaline and instinct as we efficiently clear the industrial space. Reloading, we continue moving like a well-oiled machine, peppering bullets into enemies like some fucked-up video game.
I don’t care much for the night vision goggles. They remove a sense of reality, our targets materializing as nothing more than white glowing figures before us.
“Starting to suspect Dante’s brother isn’t in the building,” Cain mutters.
“You think I’d lead you astray? He’s there,” Alaric says.
“His phone is here,” I clarify.
There’s hesitation on the comm, and then Alaric’s voice comes through quieter than usual. “Maybe you should get out. Cain?”
It’s the first time I've heard a hint of concern in Alaric’s tone.
“We’ll be alright, Alaric,” Cain replies. “Restore the power.”
Lights flick on, and the heater rumbles to life to combat the chill that fell over the building.
Glancing at Cain, I ask, “Tunnels?”
He nods. “Tunnels. Alaric, tell us how to get there.”